The Gate of Heaven (43 page)

Anger came in waves of white-hot rage, but Demetrius knew there was no time to give in to it. He had to keep his wits about him. “Tersa,” he called. “Come. Let's get her dressed. We're leaving this place.”

Ten minutes later Demetrius stepped outside the palace carrying Dinah and followed by Tersa. The wagon was drawn up with Amasa and the other two guards standing waiting.

Dinah was whimpering; one of her eyes was swollen shut and the other was a mere slit. Demetrius heard her whisper something and leaned forward but could not make it out. Gently, he said, “You're all right now. I've got you.”

“Demetrius?”

“Yes?”

“Take…take me home, Demetrius!”

Demetrius lifted her up and set her gently in the back of the wagon. “Tersa, you ride with her. I'll drive.”

Demetrius turned, but before he could get into the wagon, Amasa called out a warning. “Demetrius, they're coming!”

Demetrius whirled to see a group of white-clad guards boiling out of an entryway. At their head was Prince Shechem, who was screaming, “Cut them down! Cut them down!”

A grim and fierce pleasure came to Demetrius then. He called, “Amasa, are you ready?”

Amasa laughed. He had a huge sword in his hand, but it looked small against his bulk. “A little blood is what I need.” He stepped forward, and when the first of the wave reached them, he sheared the man's head off with one blow.

Demetrius threw himself into the fray, and he and his three companions hewed and hacked. He tried to get to Shechem, but the prince remained back, shouting, “Kill them! Kill them all!”

The battle did not last long. After three more of the guards lay bleeding and writhing like cut worms, the rest retreated.

“Come, Prince Shechem, let's you and I have a bout!” Demetrius shouted, but the prince turned and disappeared inside the portal, followed by his guards.

“Come. Let's get out of this place,” Demetrius growled. He leaped up into the seat of the wagon and grabbed the reins, and the animals moved forward at once.

Dinah awakened to pain such as she had never known. She seemed to hurt all over and could barely see. Reaching up to touch her face, she found her hair stiff with blood.

“Don't try to move, mistress.”

“Tersa, is that you?”

“Yes.” Dinah felt the soft touch on her head. She was being held almost like a child, and she clung to Tersa and began to weep.

“Don't cry. It's all right. It's all over.”

Dinah clung to Tersa, her body shaking with sobs. “No, it won't ever be over…!”

Levi and Simeon were beside themselves with fury when the entourage arrived back at camp, the guards limping behind it. Seeing the bloodied and swollen face of their sister as Demetrius lifted her out of the wagon and carried her toward the tent, both of them seemed to go insane. They were shaking, their faces pale with rage. Levi began screaming, “We'll kill him! We'll kill the king! We'll kill all their servants!”

Simeon was even worse. He and Levi had always been the most violent of Jacob's sons, and now they ran around trying to gather together a party of men to go attack the king.

Reuben, pale and shaken by what had happened, grabbed them by the arms. “It's no time for that. We've got to see that our sister is all right.”

“All right? She'll never be all right! She's been ruined by that monster of a prince. I'll kill him! See if I don't!” Levi shouted.

Jacob heard his sons shouting, but he quickly pushed past them into the tent and fell on his knees beside Dinah. He was crushed at the sight of her and began to weep when she turned away from him, crying, “Don't touch me, Father. I'm unclean.”

Jacob whispered, “Don't be foolish, child.” He pulled her over and took her in his arms. She clung to him, and weeping came like a storm. He held her and looked up to see Demetrius still standing there. He saw the grim rage in the eyes of the tall young man and knew he would get the full story later. Now, however, all he could think of was his daughter. He held her as she wept, and he wept too, inwardly calling out,
O God, why did you allow this to happen?

King Hamor was furious with Shechem. As soon as he had discovered what had happened during the night, he stormed into Shechem's House of Delight and jerked his son out of bed by the hair. He ignored the women who scattered like frightened chickens. “You idiot! You crazy imbecile!” the king raged. “All you had to do was wait and we would eventually have had the girl and all of her father's possessions.”

Shechem's face grew pale. He had never seen his father in such a rage. He tried to speak, but his father merely slapped his cheeks and cursed him. So he sat there and waited until his father seemed to get a grip on himself. Clearing his throat, the prince said, “I was wrong, but it's not too late.”

“Not too late? That's what you think! Don't you know how violent these people are? They still tell the story about how this man's grandfather took a few hundred men and defeated a whole army, and this man Israel is of the same blood.”

“But they'll listen if I ask her to marry me.”

Hamor stared at his son. Bitterness marred his face and soured his expression. “You'd better hope so,” he said, “or you'll wake up one night with your throat cut from ear to ear.” He paced back and forth and said, “I'll have to talk with the father. I'll have to crawl on my hands and knees—figuratively speaking, of course.”

“Yes, the girl really is a sweet little morsel—”

“Shut your foul mouth before I shut it for you!” Hamor shouted. “You've put me in a bad position. Now I've got to get us out of it!”

Jacob stared unblinkingly at the king. He had risen, and the king, who had come with only four men, had bowed before him, saying, “A terrible thing, my brother, but we must talk.”

Jacob stood for a moment, but the rage that filled some of his sons suddenly boiled in his own veins. He wanted nothing more than to pull out his dagger and slice this man's throat, but he knew that this was an idle thought. He stood like a stone, facing Hamor, and dropped his eyes so that the king would not see his anger.

Hamor began to speak. He apologized most abjectly for what had happened. “My son is hot-blooded and not the wisest young man in the world. Nevertheless, he loves your daughter, and I have come to ask that you give her to him in marriage.”

If Hamor had expected to see Jacob overwhelmed with joy at the offer, he was disappointed. When Jacob lifted his face, Hamor saw nothing but a mask.
This man would kill me if he could
was the thought that passed through his mind, and he began to panic. He was helpless here before this man with only a token of a guard. He began to apologize profusely and finally said, “You and I are older, my friend. We know that out of bad things sometimes good will come. So let it be with this. My son will treat your daughter as a princess. You have my word on that. If he does not, I will have him beaten as I would have the lowliest slave in my kingdom. My sacred word on it!”

Jacob said, “I will speak with my sons about your offer.”

Relief then came to Hamor. “That is as it should be. Shall I wait for your answer?”

“Yes, you may wait here. I will have refreshments sent.”

The sons of Jacob were stone-faced as they listened to their father. Jacob spoke of Hamor's offer and then said with a weariness in his eyes and a shrug of his shoulders, “We have no choice.”

“Yes, we have a choice,” Simeon hissed, his face contorted. “We can kill him right now! He only brought a few guards with him. Kill them all!”

“We cannot do that.”

“But, Father, you can't give Dinah to this man—not after what he's done to her.”

“The king has given me his word that he will personally see to it that Dinah is never abused again.”

“His
word
!” Levi shouted. “What kind of word does he have? He just covets our flocks. That's all he wants.”

A murmur of assent went around, and for a time a heated argument raged. But finally Jacob called for quiet.

“We have no choice,” he said, looking more like a beaten man than his sons had ever seen him.

“Father's right,” Judah said. “No other man would have my sister after she has been so disgraced. The whole countryside knows about it.”

“That is right,” Reuben spoke up at once. “The prince is a vile man, but I will have a word with him. If he mistreats Dinah again, I will kill him myself.” From the meekest of the brothers this was, indeed, indicative of their feelings.

But Jacob knew they had no choice. “It must be,” he said.

Levi had said nothing, but now he spoke up. “I ask only one thing.”

“And what is that, my son?”

“That Shechem, his father, and the members of the royal family be circumcised.”

Jacob blinked. His own sons were circumcised, as was he himself. It was a covenant for them with their God, the Supreme Lord of all. But he did not understand why Levi would want this of the king and his people. He stared at Levi. “Why should I ask that?”

“They deserve some physical pain for what they have done to our sister.”

Instantly Simeon agreed, and the others were not opposed.

“Very well. I will make this offer.”

“He will accept,” Simeon said bitterly. “You won't believe me, Father, but all he wants are our herds.”

“Enough of that,” Jacob said wearily. “I will go talk with King Hamor.”

“No, Father, you can't make me marry that man!” Dinah cried. “Please don't do it.”

Jacob had broken the news to Dinah, and her reaction was exactly what he had expected. He had tried to prepare himself for her pleas, but he could see no other way out. “It has to be this way, Dinah. There is no alternative.”

Dinah had kept to herself since she had been brought back to camp. She had seen no one, keeping to her tent. Now she stood looking at her father, her face still swollen, although not so badly now. The physical damage would soon repair itself, but Jacob knew Dinah's wounds were inward, and his heart cried out to her. But as head of his family, he had to make this hard decision. He did the best he could to get her to see there was no other way, but she turned away and threw herself facedown on the bed.